Chapter 4 #2
We had crossed into a city in Hell.
I gazed over sprawling rooftops and stone towers, bridges over red-watered canals and a skyline of spires. There was no green to be found, no forests or sea. Obsidian stone was all I could see, marred with splashes of crimson.
Streets wove between the buildings, some narrow and claustrophobic, others wide yet empty, shrouded in shadows, and I couldn’t help but sense that it radiated a sinister and restless energy.
“What happens now?” I asked, my voice steady, though I felt ready to collapse.
“I have other errands to attend to.” Leander’s tone was light, but something darker flickered behind his eyes.
“But I . . . I’ve got nowhere to go,” I said quietly.
“Don’t look so worried.”
We were in Hell, which meant he had to have done something awful to end up here, as did everybody in this place. I had everything to worry about.
“Fortunately for you,” Leander continued, “I’ll be around later should you need my assistance. I’m not in the habit of disappointing.” He gave me one last lazy smirk, then turned and disappeared down a nearby alley.
His footsteps pounded on the cobblestones, fading into the distance. A strange mix of relief and dread came over me. Part of me was glad to be rid of him, yet the quiet that followed his departure was somehow worse.
I was alone.
In Hell.
I spun in circles, my breath hitching as I realised how little I knew. Where was I supposed to go? What was I supposed to do?
Wait. I died, remember? There is nothing left for me.
My eye caught a figure emerging from one of the winding streets.
The woman was draped in a sleek, inky-black cape that mirrored the glossy umber tone of the loose curls tumbling around her face.
There was something regal about her. It wasn’t just her tall, elegant posture or the slight tilt of her chin, but her shrewd gaze that locked onto me and held no warmth.
As she approached, her eyes burned with the same intensity a cat gives its prey.
“If you’re done gawking,” she said coolly, “I’d like to get this over with.”
My eyebrows went high. “And you are—”
“Someone with better things to do. Move.”
“Charming,” I muttered.
“Confidence isn’t a sin, darling.” Her lips curled into a frosty smile.
“Did Leander send you?”
Her gaze hardened. “He doesn’t trust you to survive more than five minutes alone.”
I studied her face, my brows knitting together. Was this stranger a friend or foe? The woman seemed impatient and irritated, so I’d bet on the latter.
“I’m already dead. What more can happen to me?”
She rolled her eyes. “Unless you want to stand here all day, follow me.”
“Where are we going exactly?”
“Do I have to spell everything out for you?”
“Considering how vague you’ve been so far, it wouldn’t hurt.”
Her eyes narrowed, but instead of replying, she turned on her heels and strode off, her cape flaring behind her. With a resigned sigh, I followed. I didn’t have a care in the world about facing my new reality. Because there really wasn’t much to worry about once you were dead . . . or was there?
Yes . . . I was worried about my brother.
After the stunt he pulled at Firstfire, Tobias would face the wrath of the Cunning Folk. And the words Barnard had uttered sent panic fluttering through my chest.
I should have stepped in when I had the chance.
Guilt ate away at me, but there was nothing to be done. I was dead now.
The city streets all looked the same, lined with fortress-like buildings, their thick stone walls pitted and scarred. That brilliant red light illuminated the cobblestones, reminding me every step of the way that I was no longer in my village.
Tobia was alone. He’d have to fend for himself. I envisioned him traipsing into the forbidden zone because desperation had urged him to forage where no one else went. He’d cross paths with the red-eyed beast because I’d never warned him. I hadn’t told him the truth.
I’m spiralling.
My attention snapped to the murmuring voices down an alleyway. Figures appeared, lurking outside obsidian doors. Several of them wore filthy clothes, but one stood out in particular because of the spectacular dress they wore.
So, Hell wasn’t entirely empty after all.
What did I expect? There were enough bad people in the Kingdom of Lothoria, many who certainly deserved this fate.
Believe me, I've come across plenty of rats in my short lifetime.
But why me? Had I not been worthy of something more?
My eyes glanced around and examined the Hell-dwellers. More and more were beginning to appear from side roads and alleys. Some strolled hand in hand, their intimacy surprising and unsettling. Others stood motionless, staring at the crimson glow in the sky as if hypnotised.
My gaze fell on a barely clothed woman strolling towards me from a shadowed alley. She raised an eyebrow when she caught me staring. Her hungry, uncomfortable gaze made me feel slightly flustered. I hurried away from the woman and stuck close to my guide’s heels, even if they were a little frosty.
“What’s your name?” I asked my companion, wanting any kind of distraction.
She sighed, clearly irritated and impatient. “Elise.”
What else could you ask a soul in Hell? “Have you been here long?”
“Yes. Long enough.”
Great, I’m making friends already.
We turned another corner, and another, and suddenly, my breath caught in my throat. A grand structure carved from black glass pierced the sky. It had more towers than I could count, and hundreds of windows reflecting the churning whorls of crimson burning overhead.
I didn’t understand this place, not yet. But this palace and the Hell-dwellers within could give me answers, like why I’d died and been dragged to this gods-forsaken place.
The gates rose before me – glass slabs groaning open independently.
I didn’t fight against the pull that urged me onwards. It was like something had a hold over me. A power over me. I couldn’t stop. My feet moved without command, carrying me over the threshold and into the palace.
In that breathless moment, I knew whatever life I’d known was long gone. And whatever waited for me in my future might just claim what was left.